


Gears That Tell Time

by Tesvyn



Series: The One-Shot March Challenge [18]
Category: Doctor Who, Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Cross-Posted on FanFiction.Net, Fobwatched Time Lord, Horology, Minor The Doctor (Doctor Who)/Harry Potter, One Shot, Time Lord Harry Potter, Watches
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-18
Updated: 2021-03-18
Packaged: 2021-03-28 08:14:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,274
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30136623
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tesvyn/pseuds/Tesvyn
Summary: He's always been good with watches and clocks.
Series: The One-Shot March Challenge [18]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2187630
Comments: 4
Kudos: 64





	Gears That Tell Time

Harry had always been curious about how watches and clocks were made and repaired thanks to the broken pocket watch he'd always had that his relatives couldn't see.

He'd been curious enough that at the age of seven when his cousin had broken a rather expensive wristwatch he'd been gifted for Christmas, he'd snuck it out of the bins and squirrelled it away to his cupboard to look at.

There was a set of tiny screwdrivers in the cupboard, and he'd managed to hide a pair of tweezers in there for when he got splinters.

With these, he carefully pried away the casing of the watch and looked at the little gears inside.

What should have been incomprehensible to his young mind instead clicked together like pieces of a puzzle.

Thirty minutes later and the watch worked as good as new, smiling to himself, he put the tools away and looked at it.

He snuck out of his cupboard that night, wiped the watch with a cloth and placed it on the kitchen table.

His aunt gave him a strange look come morning but didn't say anything.

Any time there was a broken watch or clock, it appeared in his cupboard, making his little activity one of the only things she approved of, even if she never told anyone else.

At age nine, Harry found out that there was a word for what he enjoyed doing, horology, and he decided that when he grew up that he wanted to be a horologist.

_**Gears That Tell Time** _

When he was taken to the wizarding world by Hagrid, Harry got a good look at some of the watches they had on offer there, and scoffed, most of them didn't tell time, but different astrological events and the ones that did show the time were poorly made.

He took a fair chunk of money out and had it converted to muggle currency to buy himself a proper tool kit, with the correct screwdrivers, cleaning tools, tweezers, pliers, screws, and more. He also took some of the money out to buy himself some good clothes and a small collection of damaged watches to practice on while at Hogwarts.

The look on his uncle's face when he realised just who had been repairing their watches and clocks all those years had been priceless.

The amount of Muggleborn and half-blood students that had watches that needed repairs throughout the years was a lot, they'd been relieved when they found out that he could repair them, and that he'd do it at a discount too, as he was still learning.

_**Gears That Tell Time** _

While travelling the country for Voldemort's Horcruxes, Harry offered his services to people they met as a travelling watch repairman, which gave them a bit of money to either rent out a room at a bed and breakfast or to get food or both.

"Honestly," he huffed, "it's not like the actual term for it is that difficult to say!"

"To be fair, Harry," Hermione started, "not many people know what a horologist is."

"Yeah mate, I'd never even heard the word before I met you," Ron informed him.

Travelling as they did actually give Harry a chance to learn more about his trade of choice, meeting older horologists who were willing to pass on their skills in exchange for a bit of work.

It was as they were camping in a small woodland area, Harry fiddling with the gears in one of his more expensive watches which had become jammed that a man who looked an awful lot like Barty Crouch Jr stumbled upon them.

They stared at him, and he stared back, and then gave them a wide grin.

"Oh! a horologist, haven't seen one of you in," he trailed off, seemingly lost in his memories, before he clapped his hands, "that doesn't matter, do any of you know where London is?"

Harry, Hermione, and Ron all shared a look, and then Harry pointed in a direction to his left, tiny watch screwdriver in hand, "like sixty miles that way."

He deflated a bit, before perking up and grinning, "mind if I join you lot then? I seem to be a bit lost as you can tell."

"Well," Hermione started, before trailing off at his puppy dog eyes.

"Bloody muggles," Ron muttered, which the man picked up on.

"Oh! 'muggles', you must be magical humans then!"

Harry, who was only half-listening to the conversation snorted, "I don't think you can chase him off now, Hermione."

The man, the Doctor, seemed fascinated with every little feat of magic they displayed and was absolutely thrilled by the expanded tent.

He also had a great time handing Harry broken watches and watching him fix them.

Eventually, he passed him one that had him staring at the little gears in absolute confusion.

"Well," he hummed, "that's hm..." he tilted the little watch to the side before he began pulling the tiny gears and screws out, laying them on the table, "very, let's say, creative."

The Doctor grinned, "I made it myself."

Harry snorted, "I can tell."

Ron laughed from where he was sat on the sofa of the small hotel room they'd rented.

He handed the Doctor the fixed watch ten minutes later and he gaped at him in shock.

"You weren't supposed to be able to fix that," he protested.

Harry raised an eyebrow in question.

"I mean, it's a Time Lord design, the gears are laid out in a way that humans shouldn't understand."

"Well, I fixed it anyway."

There was silence for a moment as the Doctor stared at him, and then they were on the floor, Harry pinned beneath him as he searched his pockets and neck, pulling out his old watch.

"Oh."

"Are you finished, or did you want to feel me up more?"

The Doctor blushed, "sorry."

"And your reaction to this?" he asked, holding his watch to the man.

"Well," he grinned, somewhat sadly at him, "it's a Chameleon Arch."

He patiently explained what it was to the three of them, and as they sat around the small coffee table, he smiled slightly at him.

"You don't have to open it, you know, you can live the rest of your life as a human, join your loved ones at the end of it."

"But it would be a lie."

"It's not a lie, you only remember being a human, you've grown as one, and you'll be one until you open that watch... if you ever do."

Harry frowned, thinking.

_**Gears That Tell Time** _

Voldemort's defeat was anticlimactic, thanks to the Doctor's help, it was over a lot quicker than it would have been otherwise.

After everything was done, Harry opened up a little watch shop near the Leaky Cauldron, where they held little leaflets offering discounts to any magical who took one to his shop.

The Doctor often popped by, bringing his newest companions along with him.

Donna was his favourite.

After the new millennium started, Harry did in fact, open the watch, but continued to run his shop, grinning at the Doctor's many attempts to drag him away to travel with him.

"I like my little shop, Doctor, but I'll cut you a deal," he leant over the counter to look at the man, "when people start to notice my lack of ageing, I'll go."

He grinned, "alright."

His watches had always been his passion, even before he'd been human, he'd actually left Gallifrey to travel to sell and repair watches.

Maybe one day he would grow bored of them, but until then, he would keep clicking the little gears together.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for the ideas, a couple of them I've actually already had similar ideas in mind for some of these one shots, actually, which is very fun to think about.


End file.
